Baseball America has singled out the Red Sox as having baseball’s No. 1 farm system in its preseason rankings for the first time in over 40 years.

It’s an affirmation of the club’s recent emphasis on player development, and after a long and often painful rebuild, the Red Sox look poised to emerge as perennial championship contenders. The club boasts three of the top 15 prospects in baseball, all of whom are likely to make their MLB debuts this season. Behind them, the Sox have amassed an impressive crop of talented players, including a burgeoning pipeline of pitchers.

Here are names to know and what fans can expect this season:

Roman Anthony, OF

Drafted No. 77 overall in 2022 with a compensatory pick acquired after losing Eduardo Rodriguez in free agency, Anthony has quickly become one of the most acclaimed Red Sox prospects in recent memory. Last year the outfielder became the youngest Red Sox minor leaguer to reach Triple-A in decades, and now the 20-year-old is on the verge of reaching the majors.

A left-handed hitter, Anthony is coming off a stellar season in which he batted .291 with 18 home runs, 65 RBI, 21 stolen bases and an .894 OPS in 119 games split between Double-A and Triple-A. His production didn’t fall off upon his midseason promotion to Worcester (.344 average, .983 OPS in 35 games), and his advanced metrics were off the charts.

Anthony comes into 2025 ranked as either baseball’s No. 1 or No. 2 prospect, depending on whether the outlet considers recent Dodgers signee Roki Sasaki a prospect or not, and as of this writing Anthony has the second-best odds to win AL Rookie of the Year according to DraftKings, behind only Yankees outfielder Jasson Dominguez. By all accounts Anthony looks like a franchise player in the making, and his continued development will be one of the biggest stories of the season for the Red Sox.

Kristian Campbell, 2B/OF

This time last year nobody knew who Campbell was. A fourth-round selection out of Georgia Tech in 2023 via the compensatory pick acquired from losing Xander Bogaerts in free agency, Campbell wasn’t on anyone’s radar and wasn’t regarded as any kind of prospect of note.

Then the season began, and Campbell immediately put the baseball world on notice.

In his first full season as a pro, the 22-year-old infielder rocketed up through the Sox system from High-A to Triple-A and finished the year by sweeping most of the significant MiLB Player of the Year awards.

Campbell batted .330 with 20 home runs, 77 RBI, 24 stolen bases and a .997 OPS in 115 games, and upon his promotion to Triple-A he continued to rake, posting a .898 OPS in 19 games with Worcester. By season’s end he was regarded as one of the game’s top prospects, and entering 2025 Baseball America had him ranked No. 4 on its preseason Top 100 list.

Like Anthony, Campbell has positioned himself as a franchise cornerstone, and it will be fascinating to see if he can continue his momentum into the new year.

Marcelo Mayer, SS

The No. 4 overall pick in the 2021 MLB Draft, Mayer has been marked for stardom since the moment he arrived. He’s lived up to the hype; the only question surrounding Mayer now is whether he can stay healthy.

Mayer enters the year ranked as MLB’s No. 15 prospect according to Baseball America after a successful 2024 in which he batted .307 with eight home runs, 38 RBI, 13 stolen bases and an .850 OPS. Mayer was promoted to Triple-A alongside Anthony and former Red Sox prospect Kyle Teel in August, but due to a lower back injury did not play a game in Worcester. It was the second straight season Mayer ended the year on the IL.

When healthy Mayer has consistently drawn rave reviews, not only for his bat but for his smooth fielding and clubhouse leadership. In the short term it’s unclear how he’ll fit into the big league picture with so many other infielders vying for position, but sooner or later Mayer’s time will come. When that happens it wouldn’t be a surprise if Mayer winds up becoming Boston’s next great shortstop.

Franklin Arias, SS

Though unlikely to impact the big league club for at least another couple of years, Arias broke out as one of Boston’s top recent international signings last season.

After dominating the Dominican Summer League in his first year as a professional, Arias arrived stateside in early 2024 and picked up right where he left off, establishing himself as one of the top players in the Florida Complex League. The now 19-year-old shortstop batted .355 with 30 stolen bases and a 1.055 OPS in 51 games, eventually earning himself a promotion to Low-A Salem. Once there he held his own against much older competition, batting .257 in 36 games following the move.

Coming into this season Arias is ranked No. 76 on Baseball America’s Top 100 Prospects list, and if he continues on his current trajectory it wouldn’t be a shock if he finished the season in Double-A Portland.

Others to watch

Though the Red Sox’s young position players remain the strength of the organization’s farm system, the pitching depth has come a long way too.

Coming into the year the Red Sox have three up-and-coming starters who could plausibly contribute to the big league rotation in 2024. Quinn Priester is a former first-round pick, and though no longer considered a prospect is still just 24 years old. Richard Fitts ranks as Boston’s No. 12 prospect according to Baseball America and made an impressive four-start cameo following his September call-up last year. Hunter Dobbins has been among Boston’s most consistent minor league starters over the past two years and was added to the 40-man roster over the winter ahead of the Rule 5 Draft.

While Luis Perales, the club’s consensus top pitching prospect, is expected to miss the season as he recovers from last summer’s Tommy John surgery, the club also has numerous other arms to watch. Those include David Sandlin, Peyton Tolle and Connelly Early.

As far as position players of note, outfielder Jhostynxon Garcia was among the organization’s breakout performers last year and led all Red Sox minor leaguers with 23 home runs. The 22-year-old outfielder was also added to the 40-man and spent time with the major leaguers in big league camp this spring.

In addition to Arias and Garcia, other recent international signings to watch include Yoeilin Cespedes, Miguel Bleis and Dorian Soto.